THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon. Questions for Roger.
Q. After the US Open, you didn't participate in any tournaments. I would like to know what you did until now.
ROGER FEDERER: Well, first of all, I had to recover. It was a tough stretch in America. I played really well. I played finals, a victory, and the semis. It was a tough match against Novak in the end. I felt I needed some rest first of all to get mentally and physically fresh again.
Once I felt I was ready to go again, I started to work out extremely hard. I had almost three weeks on my hands which I used to do a lot of fitness and a lot of tennis.
Had a good time. Felt great. Was able to work hard, spend time with the family. I'm ready to go here now.
Q. You used to come to Shanghai every year. How do you feel this time after two years' break?
ROGER FEDERER: One and a half years, not quite two years. I was here for the Masters Cup. But it almost feels like two years.
I've missed Shanghai as well last year. But I just was too tired, to exhausted. With everything that happened through the summer, with marriage, kids, French Open, Wimbledon, the American summer, I just needed a rest. So it gave me six weeks off. That really allowed me a chance to, you know, find my energy again for what's to come at the end of the year and almost next year, where I played great in Australia. It's kind of paid off.
But this year I definitely wanted to make the trip here to Shanghai. The fans are amazing here. I am probably one of the only ones here who was here in 2002 as well for the Masters Cup held for the first time at the EXPO.
Great memories. I always played great here. I never had a bad tournament. Now that it's a Masters 1000, me having also opened the stadium here, it's extra special coming here and playing outdoors in Shanghai, which I'm very excited about.
So far I've been able to see many fans. They all seem very excited. The same can only be said from my side, as well.
Q. I see that you have Gary back with you as your physio. Where is Stephane? Is he taking a break?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, he's taking a break and he'll be back probably by Basel.
Q. I think Shanghai is the first tournament that you were in a tournament without your family in your company.
ROGER FEDERER: It's been a while, yeah.
Q. Do you miss them? You go back to your hotel, you're by yourself, you don't have Mirka or the twins, do you feel bored?
ROGER FEDERER: It's bored, yeah (laughter).
It's a bit slower, that's for sure. But I have good friends here. We have a good time, you know. It's busy here anyway. I have a lot of things to do with some of my great sponsors. Also media I'm doing quite a bit. For that side I'm kept busy. Obviously, it also allows me to sleep a bit more and practice hard.
That's what I'm doing really. That fills up the day a bit. But we make sure we have nice dinners at the end of the day. But clearly it's a different week this time around that they're not here. I do miss them, yes, of course.
Q. You said you've been practicing very hard during three weeks. Is it to prepare the end of the season but also a way to prepare the beginning of the next season?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I would think so. I mean, the yearend season was very short. It's been like this for a couple years now. Having only four weeks off after the World Tour finals is not a whole lot. Plus we have Christmas. I usually have a tendency also to play one or two XO's. Last year I didn't play any XO's at all.
This year we're playing one of the exhibitions against Rafa in Zurich for the Roger Federer Foundation. That's also going to take a few days away again. That's also for sure one of the reasons I'm using one of those last few weeks to prepare for next season, as well. Yes, that's correct.
Q. Do you find by your standards this year could have been termed something of a disappointment? Do you think this tournament could be a way of salvaging that in some respect?
ROGER FEDERER: Well, the season's not over yet. Let's not come to the conclusion here that this has been a bad year or that I'm not happy with it.
I won the Australian Open. I think I played well at the US Open, was a point away from making the finals, and then you never know. Wimbledon obviously was a disappointment and the French, because I was defending champion in both those tournaments, but I wasn't able to come through.
It's the way it is, you know. I had some tough losses this year with match points sometimes, some really close matches which maybe in the past have gone my way.
I think I was able to turn it around a little bit actually in Toronto and Cincinnati. I think I had some good wins and also I played really well at the US Open. It's unfortunate I couldn't come through.
But, I mean, I still have five tournaments to play. This season is far from over. I feel like I'm playing really well and feeling well. We'll see how the season plays out and then I'll make a statement how the season was.
Q. Is Paul with you?
ROGER FEDERER: Yes.
Q. We saw you obviously together in New York. In the off tournament weeks, what sort of work have you and he been doing together?
ROGER FEDERER: Uhm, well, first of all he's here, yes. Paul is here. Severin came first to Dubai, then Paul was supposed to join us at some stage. He got sick. He couldn't come for a week or so. He only came for the end of the buildup. So I did all the buildup with Severin, except the last three days when Paul arrived.
Q. That was in Dubai?
ROGER FEDERER: That was in Dubai, yes. I was there the whole time between New York and here.
And then he's going to come here. Then I'll do Stockholm, Basel and Paris with Severin. Paul might join us in Paris. Then we'll do the World Tour Finals together.
So we didn't have that much time together to work on stuff with Paul. He's in constant talks with Severin, you know, what we could do. Severin has his ideas, as well. We're working on the right things. Then obviously Paul is going to come for the offseason in December to Dubai and we'll work there. In February we'll have another buildup. We'll see who's gonna be there.
It's important I'll have some good time with him again, keep it on a regular basis. Things are going well.
Q. Is there a freshness to it? Does it bring something new to the whole thing?
ROGER FEDERER: Clearly, yeah. That was the idea. Otherwise I wouldn't have, you know, done something with him. I had a long enough test period to figure out if I did like what he was saying, and I did like it. I thought it was interesting. I thought it was something different, something new, with a lot of experience.
I'm looking forward to the upcoming weeks: this week and the rest of the year with him.
Q. We all know in 2002 it's the first time you came to Shanghai for the Masters Cup. After several years, how does your mental state change between these years? What's most impressive about the changes for the city and the stadium and the tournament?
ROGER FEDERER: I mean, a lot has changed since 2002. I maybe had, I don't know, four titles. Now I have 63 I think. I'm not even sure. So it's been an amazing run for me, the last eight years, with a lot of success, incredible streaks, a lot of fun, becoming somewhat of a national hero back home in Switzerland, which is a hard thing to do.
You know, being here in 2002 obviously has been very different to being here, let's say, two years ago. When you come back now, every time you play, you're one of the big favorites. In 2002, I was just happy to be part of the tournament. Only later did I realize the power and the potential, you know, I had, and especially this country had, you know, to embrace tennis and to see what they really wanted to achieve here in this part of the world, especially here in Shanghai where people seem so excited about this sport. There's flags everywhere from the airport when you arrive till here, to the Qizhong Stadium.
The excitement they have to come here, it's a lot of fun for the players. Have an incredibly strong fan base it seems here in China. That's why I loved playing at the Olympics in Beijing and finally I'm back here again after missing last year. So I feel like I'm very connected to China.
Q. Switzerland is out of the Davis Cup World Group. What is your feeling about that?
ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, disappointment. Obviously I'm not happy about it. But it's something I couldn't control. I said I'm not going to go to Kazakhstan. It was a tough trip. We always do that when we saw the draw come out. We'll talk about the future in the next few months now.
会見の内容をすっ飛ばして、 " The fans are amazing here. "に、涙が~~・(ノД`)・° もちろん、テニスの大きなトーナメントが開かれる場所では、世界中どこにでもロジャーファンはたくさんいるし、 ロジャーはみんなに感謝してくれている、と、きちんとわかってはいるのですが・・・。
Q. Can you talk about your energy level out there today. You looked fresh, running down dropshots, hitting shots between your legs. Did the four weeks off after the Open help get you to this point? ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I mean, I thought I had some good time off before Toronto and those tournaments, as well. So I always make sure I have enough breaks, enough holidays, buildup, tournaments, practice. The whole thing always needs to come together. Maybe they're tricky coming back the first couple of matches, but once you're in, it's a big advantage you had time off. It's not an easy thing to do to sit on the sidelines to see four, eight to 10 guys winning tournaments while you're sitting home working out because working out doesn't give you a whole lot of points. That's why today I thought was a really good match because I knew the danger in John Isner today. He's really a great player, rising, up and coming. I think he's going to have a really good career. Today I knew I was in for a tough match with a really difficult draw. I'm really happy I was able to come true and, like you said, play a match with a lot of energy, a lot of variation, a match that was really solid for a first round after not having played for so long.
Q. Can you look ahead to the next round. You said you're feeling fairly well. You have to be pretty confident? ROGER FEDERER: I play Seppi? Andreas, I've played him multiple occasions. I think I played him many times at the beginning of last year. He plays the ball really flat. He has a good forehand, good backhand. That's his bread and butter. I have to make sure I'm moving around and playing aggressive myself. It's going to be a completely match. I think after tomorrow's match I'll be able to assess much more on how I'm really playing. But the important thing is getting through. The early rounds doesn't matter how. But I think I played really well and I'm excited about tomorrow's match.
Q. Off topic. It's said you might be learning Mandarin. Is this true? Taking a few Mandarin lessons? ROGER FEDERER: Not a few. One so far. We're going slow. Little by little. It's not an easy language. I don't know if you have had any lessons.
Q. No. ROGER FEDERER: It's hard, you know, but maybe I'll pick up a few sentences here and there.
Q. What might be the reason for this? ROGER FEDERER: I don't know. I have some time. My wife and kids are not here. I thought it would be fun. We did it together with the team. So I thought to change it up a bit of just having a regular routine. I like languages in general. I speak Swiss German, German, French and English fluently. I thought a bit Mandarin, which I'll never speak anyway, would just be a fun hour for me to learn some.
Q. This was a private lesson? ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, it was a private lesson with the team who is here. They gave up after 10 minutes, and I was the guy who was saying the words and sentences. I was the guy who was really learning, not them.
Q. (Indiscernible.) ROGER FEDERER: I would think so, too, but it's not that simple, unfortunately.
Q. How do you feel about doing it again, the shot between your legs? Also, how do you feel about the reaction from the audience tonight? ROGER FEDERER: The reaction was amazing, as it usually is after a shot between the legs. But it's something that happens so rare, you know. Usually happens maybe once a tournament and then you have to play the score. Depends on the opponent you play against. Could have done anything different. But I'm hitting that shot so well now, it's almost the most consistent shot in tennis these days. I've attempted it like four times in the last few years, every time I made it and won the point off it. I played it great again. The ovation from the fans was absolutely amazing again. Like I said, it's a lot of fun playing here in Shanghai. I have some incredible souvenirs from amazing matches, amazing points played. When the crowd reacted, it reminded me of the good times I've had in Shanghai over all those years.
Q. You went to EXPO. Could you share your experience, your impression. ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, that was also something I wanted to do when I heard the EXPO was here in Shanghai. You never know until you get here and you see the schedule in front of you what you're going to be doing the next few days and week. Obviously with practice it's important, does the rain interrupt any of that, but it didn't, so we were able to organize it. The Swiss pavilion was helpful to us, to organize to see other pavilions at the same time. We went to see America, Australia, South Africa, Switzerland and one more we went to see. I forgot. We went to see five. We had really a good time, you know. We'll do it again. It was interesting to see from the touristy side, even though that's not the focus, what they can show. Me as a traveler, I think that was very, very interesting. And then from all the energy side, wind, all the green stuff they could do is also a different side, you know. I went to see China, of course. I forgot. I saw so little of it, that's why I forgot, you know. But because it's still here, after the EXPO closes, I would want to go back because the part I saw was absolutely amazing already. Probably this trip won't be enough, but maybe next year or so I hope I can go see more. But I had a wonderful time. The team joined me. It reminded me a little bit of the Olympic site with all the stadiums, the way the people were moving around, the way the streets were built. It was a very nice experience. Happy I did it. It took me a while. Took me about five, six hours. Yeah, I would do it again if I could.
Q. Back to that shot you made. Did you do it intentionally or spontaneously? ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I mean, I did it because I was down in the score. I was down 30 Love, had nothing to lose anyway. I hoped to win the point, getting a dropshot, up the line. But John was there. He hit the lob. I wasn't sure how far it's going to go, if it's going to go out, if it is going to stay in, if it's going to go towards my backhand, towards my forehand. I think if it goes towards my forehand, I can't do it. Then I would play a proper forehand or a slapshot or something. That way really gave me the opportunity to run back and just time it perfectly with the timing to hit it through the legs. I know I can hit it really well. I tried it out. I knew I wasn't too deep in the court. Even if I would hit it and he would make it, I still had the chance to turn around and get the next shot. He missed the volley because I hit it really well. It was luck a bit, but it all worked out perfect. It was fun.
Q. I heard you've been practicing with some Chinese young players. ROGER FEDERER: Yeah.
Q. Can you give an assessment of their play? Is there any advice you can give them to make the next progress? ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, you never want to give them too much advice because otherwise they come back next year at Wimbledon and they beat you first round. You have to be careful what you tell them. I'm happy giving 12 year olds advise, but maybe not 18, 20, 22 year olds.
Q. How old are they? ROGER FEDERER: I don't even know how old they are. I don't want to know. That's why I don't give them any advice. But it was fun, I have to say. I think I played with two guys yesterday. They had great intensity, very excited. Took some pictures afterwards. I thought they were talented, you know. I think we've seen this week a few names pop up with the win over Stepanek and another guy played really well, too. I think they're doing the right things. I just think China has got to be a little bit patient. I have the idea they're getting a little too excited, wanting men's players too quickly. Tennis is a sport that takes time to move forward in the rankings. You know it. There's many, many players working hard in South America, in Europe, in Australia, all around the world, that it's not so simple just to break through. But they're doing the right things with CTA, even Mercedes Benz helping with Swing for the Stars. I think that's a great initiative. I'm happy to be the ambassador for that. I hope the Chinese players will come up soon.
Q. I guess we'll have to congratulate your sister. ROGER FEDERER: Yeah, I guess so. A little bit late, but yes.
Q. Looks like your family has a tradition of having twins. I begin to think you and your sister are twins at the beginning. ROGER FEDERER: Me and her, no. Maybe I have a twin brother. He won six slams and I won eight slams. I did half of the things and he did the other half. No, it's great. I'm very happy for her. It's a wonderful thing to have twins. I wish her only all the best. I spoke to her today. She seems she's coping really well with it. She got a boy and a girl. I got two identical girls. We're looking forward to reuniting. I haven't seen them yet. I'm sure when I come back to Basel, I'm sure I'm going to see them.
今回はbetween the legs を決めても、「やったー」という表情をしなかったので、例のジンクスは心配しなくて良いんじゃないでしょうか 今後4試合、こんな素敵なRogiを見続ける事が出来ますように
双子ちゃんのもの、スイスっぽいものってことで「牛」(アルプスのイメージか?? 、これまでロジャーと一緒に撮った写真やサインなどをちりばめた本、などなど。。 さすがのロジャーでもびっくり、なようで、 "It's very different, to be honest. Not everywhere do I get such nice and creative gifts. ロジャーがファンに愛されていることを実感し、元気付けられているのはとっても嬉しい 、でも、・・・ちょっっぴり中国が羨ましい。。。いや、けっこ妬ましい。。日本に来てくれたら、いっぱい考えるからぁぁぁ